Thanumalayan temple
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The Thanumalayan temple is an important Hindu temple located in Suchindram, Tamil Nadu.
[edit] History
The Sthanumalayan Temple is of importance to Shaivaites and Vaishnavite Sects of Hinduism.
The place got the name of Suchindrum, according to stalapurana. Hindu Mythological legend has it that king of devas, Indra got relieved of a curse at the place of the main linga in the temple. The term "Suchi" in Suchindrum is believed to have derived from the Sanskrit meaning that stands for "purify".Accordingly Lord Indra is supposed to visit the temple for performing "Ardhajama Pooja" or prayer.
The temple is an architectural marvel known for its quality of workmanship in stone. The musical pillars carved out of single stone and which stands at 18 feet is an architectural delight. There are 7 musical pillars in the Alangara Mandapam each cut out of single rock, which emit the sounds of various musical instruments when struck. There are 1035 pillars with carvings in the dancing hall. The Anjaneya or Hanuman statue stands at 22 feet or 3 m and is carved of a single granite block and is one of the tallest statues in India. The Nandi statue, made of mortar and lime and which is 13 feet tall is one of the biggest nandi statue in india.
Construction of the temple extended over a period of at least six hundred years. Parts date back as far as the ninth or tenth century, others from the fifteenth century, and a huge seven-storey pyramidal gopura was erected during the sixteenth century.
The religious significance of the temple stem,from the fact that the main statue of linga represent Siva (Sthanu), Vishnu (maal) and Brahma (Ayan).The representation of the three central gods of Hinduism in one Linga makes it one of the unique temple in India. Anthropologically it could be stemmed from the fact that Travancore with the main temple at padmanabhapuram was Vaishnavite and the Nanjil Pillais and other community in Nagarcoil were primarily Shaivaites, because of the influences from Chola, Chera and Pandya kingdoms before the advent of Travancore kingdom. One of the unique aspects of the temple is the presence of the gods across the length and breadth of the Hindu pantheon, from Rama and Krishna to Amman and kandan. The different Hindu sects from vaishnavism, shaivism, to more localised Tamil sects like amman, kandan are represented in the different idols of the temple.
The car festival celebrated in this temple during April and December every year attracts crowds of thousands of people.
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